Monday, April 25, Last Day in Paris
Today we thought it would be fun (and maybe involve less walking) take the "Batobus" up and down the Seine. This is not a tour boat, it's a hop on, hop off, boat that stops at eight points between the Eiffel Tower and the Jardin des Plantes.
We hopped on at the Notre Dame stop and cruised up the Tour Eiffel where we thought we might climb or ride up to the top. That is until we saw the lines and also the sign that said the top was closed due to "congestion".
So...we walked around a bit and then...
It was time for a beverage! This is the golden dome of the Invalides built by Louis XIV in 1671-1676. It was a hospital for wounded soldiers and Napoleon is entombed there. We took advantage of the Invalides grounds to have our last al fresco meal. We thought these two 50cl bottles which we bought at a grocery store for about 4 Euros each were pretty good.
We walked around some more and then hopped back on out Batobus.
There are many stands where you can insert your credit card and grab a bicycle for 15 minutes, an hour or whatever and return it to any other stand around town. We didn't try it because it was enough of a challenge for us to navigate on foot, but I like the concept. There are many scooters, and all sorts of motorcycles in Paris including a lot of these three-wheelers which looked fun and practical. No kickstand to worry about and I'm guessing they had a reverse gear.
Our last Paris dinner was at "Le Relais de l'Entrecot". You don't have too many choices here. In fact the only entree choice is steak and fries with a sort of sauce or gravy. You can start with a salad and order wine and a limited number of desserts but, if you're not into steak and fries, go somewhere else. When you finish your first helping, they come around and pile more on your plate!
We got there early and got a table right away. When we left there was a line out the door.
The next morning we caught the train back to Charles de Gaulle and said good-bye to Paris. after a layover and a one hour delay at JFK, we made it back to San Diego late Tuesday night. We had a great three weeks but it was good to be home again. Please email me with any comments, corrections, suggestions, stock tips, whatever. Thanks.
Ireland, New Market and Dingle
Paris, Wednesday, Thursday & Friday
